A Collection of Drabbles
by Maplestrike
Summary: Who found the cure? Why was she killed? What made him run away? A collection of drabbles.
1. Shards

**Whilst I wait for OC's for **ĐэΛđ θҒ τĦэ ŊιğĦτ, **I thought I'd make a drabble book, because I have loads of ideas and I can't exactly post them all on the main story. Most of them will be based on **ĐэΛđ θҒ τĦэ ŊιğĦτ, **but some might just be random ones. **

* * *

She didn't want to be his mate. She had no choice after what Scorchblaze did.

"I love you, Scorchblaze." She used to whisper every night. At first he replied, telling her she loved him too. But over time, his voice grew quiet, still. He no longer spoke to her like he used to. His eyes became cold and harsh.

"Coldstar is getting old." That was his excuse. He was the deputy, and he knew it wouldn't be long before his leadership began. Then one day he turned to her.

"I can't be your mate," he said. "Coldstar is dying, and to be a leader with kits is to be a soft leader." Her heart broke then, shattered into tiny pieces.

"Take Stormfang."

Those were the last words he said to her.


	2. Left Wanting

Why did she get the attention all the time? He was the best fighter, faster than Loudpaw and stronger than Echopaw. So how come she gets the leader whilst he was stuck with mangy old Shadefoot? He deserved better than third ranked. Wildflower was always telling him how he was going to be the strong one, the fast one, the smart one, the successful one. Only now Echopaw had gone and taken that away from him without a second glance back.

He would show her.


	3. Sparkle

They left her lying by the river. The morning sun is first to find her, the gleaming rays of light illuminating the blood oozing from her wounds. She looks almost asleep, her eyes closed delicately. Around her broken body, the dewy grass sparkles in the weak winter sunlight.

* * *

**Foreshadowing of what is to come in **ĐэΛđ θҒ τĦэ ŊιğĦτ.

**If you like the drabbles so far, why not leave a review requesting what you would like me to write about? I'll try to do as many as possible. **

**Maplestrike XD**


	4. Hidden

"You can't make me go outside."

"You can't keep your kits hidden inside the nursery all day just because you're scared they'll go missing like Ro-"

"Don't say that name to me."

"Nothing will happen to your kits! It's only the clearing; every cat in the clan will be watching them."

_"Mother, we want to go outside and play in the snow!"_

"My kits will not leave the nursery so long as I am still here to protect them."


	5. At Peace

**This idea came from **Lightningspirit the supreme**. Thanks for the inspiration XD**

* * *

The apprentice ambled through the forest. The scent of pungent berries and delicate petals drifted on the soft Newleaf breeze. He stopped for a moment, fascinated, watching two starlings squabbling over a worm. He had no desire to stop their quarrel by catching one of them. He lifted his head and closed his eyes, enjoying the wind ruffling his fur. Despite the faint clamour of voices behind him, the apprentice felt completely at peace. He kept walking with his eyes closed, absorbing the weak sunshine. Gradually the clamour of voices became louder and louder, but he paid no heed to them. _Let them argue, _he thought. He didn't notice the ground becoming steadily damper beneath his paws, nor did he hear the rushing water. The last sound he heard before he hit the water was a piercing yowl from his mentor. Then swirling water engulfed him and he saw no more.


	6. Flicker

**Credit for the idea goes to **Lightningspirit the supreme** for this one.**

* * *

_I've had a good life,_ though Cloudflower as a cough racked her body. She remembered all the times with her mate, Owltail. _And Coldflame. _She felt a rush of pride as she thought of her son, who was now clan deputy. And then she remembered. _Coldflame betrayed our clan. _Cloudflower had seen her son crossing the border into another clan many times, meeting with a pretty tabby she-cat. _That's one thing I must set straight before I die. _

"Why do you keep meeting with that she-cat?" asked Cloudflower desperately. Coldflame shrugged.

"She's my mate. Why shouldn't I meet with her?"

"You're breaking the warrior code!"

"I'm not breaking our code."

"Traitor." Cloudflower spat out the word with contempt. Coldflame growled.

"I am no traitor!" he roared, springing towards his mother, claws outstretched.

By the time they dragged Coldflame away from his mother, she was dead.

Coldflame was exiled from his clan. Some cats say he joined a new clan to be with his mate.

A tabby she-cat was found in the centre of the camp clearing, surrounded by the remnants of an abandoned clan.


	7. We Are Fire

Our paws run swift and light. Our pelt shines with dark light. Our eyes dance with flickering shadows.

We are fire. Fear us.

* * *

**Short one this time, sorry. **

**Speaking exams over! Free to write (until next coursework jumps out at me).**

**Really stuck on stuff for ĐэΛđ θҒ τĦэ ŊιğĦτ**, **I'm currently open for characters at the moment. Why not head over there and submit some? Would totally appreciate it. **

Just click here and leave a review with your character ideas.


	8. Sight

Don't look back,  
Don't look forwards,  
Don't look now,  
Don't look at all.

Or can't you?


	9. While The Others Sleep

A kit wandered through the forest. The meagre sunlight pushed its way through the trees, setting his ginger fur ablaze. For a while he just stood and watched the trees rippling gently, fascinated by their beauty. He felt as though he was watching himself from somewhere else. The sunlight moved in accordance with the trees, warping the ground below. The kit thought he saw a mouse scuttle past his paw, but when he twitched his ears he heard nothing. All sorts of thoughts kept drifting through his mind, from the way a squirrel's tail moved in the wind to how the moonlight looked so different to the sun.

And why didn't his mother care about him? Why was she always concentrating on his brother and sister? A raging torrent of raw emotion threatened to engulf him. Why did he feel like this? During the day he never worried about these sorts of things. Maybe it was because he hadn't slept in days, the moonlight stopping his eyes from ever closing for more than a heartbeat. Sleep was important, he knew, but he never felt tired when the sun was up.

It was only at sunset that his eyelids began to droop, and his mind began to race.

Maybe it was the moonlight that kept Loudkit awake.

Or perhaps it was because it was the dead of the night.

* * *

**Still open for drabble suggestions. Do you want to see more **DOTN **drabble or unrelated shenanigans? **

**Keep reading,**

**Maplestrike 0_0**


	10. Birdsong

Sitting here, above the feline world. Squirrels chatter and mice squeak. Down below the cats carry on their lives. _Keep your eyes to the ground, _they say. _You might walk straight past a piece of prey. _If they instead tried looking up, they might find something more. Narrow minded, they are. _Don't look and they can't see you. _

A swallow whistles its song, echoing over the tree tops.

* * *

**Welcome to suggestions for drabbles. You could give me a plot outline, or try giving me a drabble title and I'll see what I can make of it!**

**Keep reading,**

**Maplestrike :)**


	11. Adventures

"Come on, it's only a bit of fun!"

"Mother will never know we went!"

_"I'm not going." _

"Fine, suit yourself. But you're not playing with _us _anymore."

Raising her head high, Sweetkit returned to the nursery. She wasn't going to sneak out of camp with Petalkit and Pinekit, even if they weren't caught. Anyway, there was no chance their mother would not notice their absence. Sighing, Sweetkit curled up in the nursery and fell asleep.

"Sweetkit, darling. I think you should see this."

Sweetkit stumbled out of the nursery, blinking sleepily. Then she froze as she set her eyes upon the clearing.

Two tiny kit bodies lay in the centre of the camp. Both were covered in blood, which was drying into sticky clumps. Suddenly Sweetkit heard a voice somewhere behind her.

It's your fault, Sweetkit, your fault

_What if I had gone…_

* * *

**Thanks for **Lightningspirit the supreme **for this idea. Why not try submitting some drabble ****titles****, and I'll see what I can write from them!**

**Keep reading,**

**Maplestrike :)**


	12. Victory

Snarling, Wildpaw leapt back into the fray. An enormous ginger rouge tried to corner her against a tree, but having the advantage of size, she slipped out under him, scoring her claws across his soft belly fur as she went. Yowling in pain, the rouge attempted to follow her, but her brother Spiderpaw leapt in front of her. Relieved, she turned to face the rouge alongside him. Spiderpaw's size and strength combined with Wildpaw's speed and accuracy made the siblings perfect combat partners. Growling, Spiderpaw reared onto his hind legs and began to swipe at the rouge's muzzle. The big ginger tomcat followed suit and lifted his front paws off the ground. At once, Wildpaw ducked down and jabbed the back of his legs, toppling the rouge over. In an instant the two apprentices were on top of him. Roaring with rage, the ginger rouge flung Spiderpaw off him. The black apprentice crashed into a tree, hard. He lay motionless.

Wildpaw stopped dead. The ginger rouge forgotten, she rushed over to the tree where Spiderpaw lay. His eyes were closed, and a trickle of blood was leaking from his mouth. _Spiderpaw, _Wildpaw whimpered, shaking her brother with a paw. She didn't see the rest of the clan chasing off the band of rouges that had attacked them. A tear leaked from the corner of her eye.

They had won, but she had lost .

* * *

**Thanks to **Lightningspirit the supreme **for the title idea. Thanks for the other suggestions you guys have submitted- they'll be written ASAP. **

**Keep reading,**

**Maplestrike 8)**


	13. Abandoned

He pulled himself out of the river, looking back regretfully at where had once been his home.

"And never come back!" yowled a stark white from the other side of the swirling water. Sighing, the warrior – no, loner – turned away from clan territory and began the long journey… where? He had been exiled by his clan. Where did he have to go? He had no idea what lay before him. The leader never allowed the warriors more than a few fox lengths away from the border. Slowly he began to trek away from the river. At least he should find somewhere to stay for a night.

After a little while, he became aware that someone was watching him. He tried to carry on padding through the trees as though he hadn't noticed. The pawsteps sounded like those of a cat. Eventually he stopped, preparing to turn and confront whoever it was that was following him. Just as he spun around, something knocked him to the ground. Stunned, he lay there for several heartbeats. Just as he pushed himself to his feet, he saw something jet-black streaking away from him.

* * *

**Thanks to everyone who has so far submitted suggestions; I'm going through them as fast as I can. **

**Just to let you know I will be down in London from Tuesday to Thursday (Great Britain time) so I won't have any time to update until Friday at the earliest. **

**Keep reading guys, **

**Maplestrike :)**


	14. Errors

_What? That's not what happened. That's not what happened at all. _

_She told us to go along with whatever she said. But if we do, they will kill us. _

_Why did she betray us? She promised she would do whatever she could to save us._

_We thought she was different from her clanmates. Caring for other cats before herself._

_We have no choice now. If we say what really happened, they will kill us for lying. _

_If we go along with her, they will kill us anyway. _

_All I can say is that if I see her again, she will pay. _

_Oh, darling. I know they can't kill you. _

_I love you, even though you are not my kit to love. _

* * *

**Another **DOTN **drabble. Read the latest chapter (ch 13) to understand why. **

**Keep reading,**

**Maplestrike :)**


	15. Leader

Are you ready to receive your nine lives?  
Nine lives are not given to any leader. You must earn them.

Have you lived a lifetime of service in your clan?

Would you put any clanmate before yourself?

Will you use your lives for the good of others?

Are you prepared to give the rest of your life to the clan?

Do you understand what it takes to be a leader?

Shall you always do what is best for someone?

If it is time to lead your clan, will you do so?

Whatever it costs you, will you never leave the clan in need?

When the time comes, would you die for your clan?

Yes. You are worthy. Let us begin.


	16. Deceive

No one knows who I am. Not really. They think they have penetrated my secrets and reached my core. They are wrong. They have reached as far as anyone else ever will. There is a fragile cocoon of secrets and lies wound around my soul, untouched by others. They can think they know me. I won't make them know they are wrong. But I will tell you one thing. There is no way to find my heart.

I don't even know if I have one any more.


	17. If The Stars Fail Us

_StarClan have existed forever, right? As long as the warrior cats live, StarClan will live alongside them. _

_Unless something happened.  
The Dark Forest tried to defeat the clans before. They failed.  
But what's to stop them from attacking again?  
The fearsome leaders and brave warriors that once lead the dark cats into battle are dead.  
But new evils lurk in the shadows, biding their time until the moment is right for them to reveal themselves.  
The clans will once more be infiltrated from within. _

_The Place of No Stars will destroy the clans. _

_And the night sky will be empty. _

* * *

**Incidentally, this is a challenge for NarwhalClan called Drabble. You should totally check it out! **

**Maplestrike :)**


	18. Mouse

Crouch down low,  
Tuck in your tail,  
Can you find  
A mouse's trail?

Twitch your ears,  
Try and keep still,  
Are you ready  
To go for the kill?

Unsheathe your claws,  
Bunch muscles tight,  
Prepare to leap  
And prepare to bite.

* * *

**Another NarwhalClan challenge.**

**Maplestrike 0_0**


	19. Not So Sure

I was stunned when she told me she was expecting my kits. Before we were mates, she was always mooning around that Scorchblaze. But then one winter day, they were apart, and she started to speak to other cats. To me. She's the most wonderful cat, no one can deny that. But I never wanted kits; I knew I didn't deserve them. I couldn't look after her and them. The kits will be beautiful, just like her.


	20. Discoveries

Echokit can see a blackbird sticking its head into a puddle, shaking its wings out to dry. She giggles as an enormous woodpigeon tries and fails to balance on a slender willow branch. She widens her eyes with astonishment as a squirrel scampers its way up an oak tree. She gasps with horror as she sees the fresh-kill pile for the first time.

* * *

**Hey there, I'm not dead! Just busy with revising for mocks. Will have a new DOTN chapter up soon (hopefully). **

**Maplestrike :)**


	21. Sunshine

She pads carefully around the ferns, although she doesn't know that she made a noise. Everything smells so clean and fresh! She can see a single raindrop balancing on the tip of a leaf, illuminated by the bright sunshine. But she can't hear the birds chattering their alarm calls, nor can she hear the fallen leaves crackle as a russet tail strokes over the forest floor. The sunshine is reflected in her blue eyes as she raises her head to observe the sky. The fluffy white clouds are the same shade as her clean pelt.

By the time she smells the scent of predator, it's too late.

* * *

**I'm still alive, guys! School's out for summer and you'll probably see a lot more chapters until September!**

**Thanks to **Lightningspirit the supreme **for the idea inspiring this story, and sorry it took so long for me to publish!**

**Maplestrike :) **


	22. Blossom

It's almost springtime, and the buds on the trees are bursting into flower. Vivid reds, delicate blues, sunshine yellows, palest of pinks. Ever so gently, a single petal detaches itself from a flower, soaring up, up, lifted by the cool breeze. Then it falls away from the slipstream, and ever-so-gently flutters down onto the surface of a dark river, leaving a single spot of crimson floating on the unmoving water.

* * *

**Sorry for the ridiculously long break, schoolwork has officially taken over. There will be more drabbles before I continue DOTN - no, it's not finished yet! - as I can just fit them in between studying. **

**As always, have a great day!**

**Maplestrike :)**


	23. A Mother's Wish

I always used to love listening to the queens in the nursery caring for their kits. I wondered, emwould I be a good mother? Now I have had my kits. I have watched them grow up, becoming apprentices, warriors, mentors and eventually having kits of their own. Blizzard, Loud and Echo will be great warriors. I just wish I could tell them myself.

* * *

**Two in one day! On fire.**


	24. New Perspective

Have you ever seen the forest from a bird's point of view? DarkClan cats might not be suited to heights, but climbing a tree opens up a whole new perspective on the forest. I can see the Dark River, the hawthorn tree, everything. Sometimes, when it's clear and early and bright, I can see the old place. Where we used to be. I barely remember where we used to live. I was so young, but I remember making the journey as a kit through a place with strange smells and harsh stone underfoot. Of course, now I know it to be twolegplace. I have since travelled there upon many occasions. How did you think I would find potential … intruders?

My favourite tree to climb is a towering birch tree behind the camp. If you look carefully, you can just see a blackened patch, burned away by a blaze.

* * *

**Any thoughts? Leave a comment! I'm open to any suggestions for drabble ideas as well! **

**Stay awesome, **

**Maplestrike :) **


	25. Something Different

You say you love the feel of the newleaf breeze through your fur, the rays of sunshine warming your pelt through. Have you ever felt the clean, sweet air of the night play over your spine? Listened for every single sound just because you can hear them? Looked up at the sky and seen cold, startling moonlight sharpen your features? Try it one time.

* * *

**I wrote this drabble in-between writing a poetry analysis essay. It gets quite confusing after a while trying to switch between the styles of writing! **

**Feel free to submit any ideas for drabbles and I'll be happy to write them - Just leave a review with your thoughts!**

**Have a great day! **

**Maplestrike :))) **


	26. Listen Carefully

Ssshhhh.

Can you hear that?

No, that's just the rain.

Not my tail, it's just brushing the leaves.

I'm not talking about the blackbird, either.

Listen carefully.

Maybe you'll find out.


	27. What Should I Call You?

Blizzardpaw was named after the snowstorm that arrived not long after he did. Loudpaw was named after the noise he made when he was hungry. Echopaw wasn't sure what she was named after. The echo of a fox howling in the distance? The echo of an honoured clan member? The echo of a long-forgotten past?


	28. Showers

Drip, drop.

It's raining in the forest, and the patrol ducks underneath ferns and bracken as they attempt to keep some of their pelts dry. Past the dead log, around the pine copse, avoiding the fox den that still smells of death.

Drip, drop.

The patrol leader races ahead, clearing fallen trunks in one leap, bounding across the river with two smooth leaps. The other cats follow, tails flailing wildly as they work to keep their balance on the slippery undergrowth.

Drip, drop.

Finally, they reach the camp entrance and streak past the brambles and thorn, desperate to dry off in their nests. The camp is completely empty.

Drip.

Drop.

Drip.


	29. Nightmare

Terror is not something many cats will feel.

Kits feel apprehension, stood by the clan leader waiting for their mentor to be announced.

Apprentices feel nervous during their final assessment, or when they're wandering what their warrior names will be.

Warriors feel fear as they face their enemy in a border raid or a battle.

Queens feel paranoia, always checking the nest to make sure all the kits are still there.

Have you ever felt so scared you can't breathe, paralyzed, the thoughts raging through your head_ you're going  
to_

_die_


	30. Descent

As he fell, he waited for somebody to say something. To say "Grab onto a branch" or "No!"

As he fell, he couldn't feel the wind rushing through his fur, but he could hear it screaming in his ears. He hoped that was why his clanmates were eerily quiet. He was falling, falling down into a bottomless pit of inky black.

As he fell, he watched the faces of his clanmates, every single eye locked onto his, their gaze so strong they could almost pull him back up to safet-

"I hereby sentence this apprentice to death."

He wasn't falling at all – he was sat by the river. Strange. It wasn't the wind he could hear, but the water rushing over the rocks with all the force of a hurricane.

He wasn't falling at all – at least not until he felt the jaws fasten around his throat.

He wasn't falling at all – he was watching the light fall away from him, gone so sharply it was like having the leaves pulled out from under his paws.

* * *

**Thirtieth drabble! I have to admit it took me longer than I had originally intended. All good stuff though.**

**Why not leave a suggestion for a title or a plot and I'll write as many as I can! **

**Thanks for every single person reading so far, even if you don't comment or make yourself known - I appreciate it all.**

**Stay cool today,**

**Maplestrike B) **


	31. Fascination in Nature

_It's so pretty. _

She stood transfixed, watching the white-tipped waves breaking onto the rocks, tasting the salt spray on her tongue. It was amazing that something so flat and calm could transform into something else entirely, something with so much power. Something that looks so beautiful.

She looks for the patterns in the water, seeking out the turquoise patches rippling and bending in the light. She doesn't notice as the wind grows stronger and stronger; her eyes are searching for the swirls and eddies within the current.

Even as she is hurled towards the surface of the water, she can't help but observe each tiny crest on the tidal wave that closes over her head.


	32. Bitter : sweet

p class="MsoNormal"The stench of blood : The scent of summer blossomsbr / The sap from a dandelion : The leaves of catmintbr / The pine needles burning : The dew droplets on leavesbr / Bitter : sweet/p 


End file.
